FTC Teacher Request Form

FTC has developed a teacher request process in order to better provide the needed support to District 48 schools and to ensure appropriate communication with the District staff. These requests should be used with one-time expenses, such as equipment to be purchased or a field trip to be funded. Expenses FTC has funded for several years, such as year-end parties and DJs for dances are in the FTC budget and do not require this form. Any District 48 staff member is eligible to apply for a teacher request grant and there is no limit on the amount you can ask for.

Asking for a Teacher Request Grant

The process to apply for a grant is the following:

1. Obtain any quotes, invoices, purchase orders, copies of catalogs, etc. that give a good indication of the expected amount of the item(s). If you don’t know the exact amount of the item or if you are asking for partial funding of a larger expense that is OK.
2. Discuss the request with your building principal. If the principal suggests changes to the request, those should be made before the form is submitted.
3. Fill out the form below and submit. Attach any appropriate documentation. A copy will be sent to you and all FTC Co-Presidents. Forward your copy do your building principal.
4. An FTC Co-President will contact you about the request and obtain any additional information required.
5. Unless the request is urgent, the request will be voted on at the next FTC monthly meeting, which are typically held the 3rd Monday of the month. Requests that occur at the start of the year may have to wait until FTC has sufficient funds to complete the request.
6. Once the request has been voted on, you will be notified what the status of the request is.
   • FTC raises money to support the schools in district 48, and our goal is to fund all the principal-approved teacher requests received.
   • For large requests it may take a while to raise the money, especially if they occur at the start of the year. If we receive requests with sufficient time left in the school year to raise money specifically for that item we can conduct special fundraising drives for that item. For example, we helped raise money for a Swartz playground, and sent out requests specifically to help fund the playground.

If a Request is Approved

If you are notified that a request has been approved, the payment can be coordinated with the FTC Treasurer. We can handle the purchase in one of two ways:

1. An invoice for the item/service can be sent to the FTC Treasurer and they can pay the invoice directly to the vendor.
2. If FTC is not paying for the item directly, then FTC will write a check to the appropriate school for the total of the teacher request. You may then coordinate with the building principal about the easiest way to purchase the item/service — whether to pay for the item yourself and get reimbursed or have the school pay for the item/service. Due to advice from the District staff about legal ownership of equipment, FTC is unable to pay district staff directly for equipment purchased — we have to write a check to the school and the school can reimburse you.

If you have any questions, please contact the FTC Co-President. Thanks for all you do for the children of District 48!